The Lunar Tales of Sailor Luna
by SaoirseParisa
Summary: Abandoned. Don't like it any more. Don't read.


_Author's Note: Hello everyone. I'm Julia and this is my first ever Sailor Moon fan fic. Do be warned, this is an entirely AU story and none of the canon characters are present sans Endymion, Serenity, and Artemis. If you don't like AU stories, you're more than welcome to not read it and back out. That's perfectly fine. This fan fic is entirely based around Naoko's scrapped Sailor Luna concept_ **(and no, not the one from the live action series)** _, and I thought Sailor Luna was just too cute to not get a fan fic focused on her, so I'm indulging myself, and I hope I can make you readers happy. If there's anything I did wrong, please let me know, but in a civilized, rational manner, please. I prefer to resolve conflicts peacefully. I do not own Sailor Moon or its characters. They are all copyrighted to Naoko Takeuchi, Toei, and other associated parties. Enjoy!_

* * *

The Lunar Tales of Sailor Luna

Mythos 1: Glimmering Under The Moonlight, I Am Sailor Luna!

(dream)

 _It was a perfectly clear day, with the sun warming a sleepy little town down below...it would have been nice if the piercing wails of a woman didn't echo through the air, scaring birds into flying away._

" _Please! No!" A hysterical woman bawled as she sat on her knees, surrounded by good samaritans. "Don't kill my baby!"_

 _A man draped entirely in black with a monocle on his left eye held a crying two year old girl by her arm, holding a small knife to her neck. "Come closer, and the child dies!" The man hissed, his lips curling up in a way that made him look like he would actually do it. Everyone could see the evil in his eyes, staring at them as though he enjoyed the suffering on their faces._

" _You're terrible, Count Killer! How could you attempt to kill a child?! You're heartless!" A bearded man shouted as his wife comforted the child's bawling mother._

" _It's your own fault for getting in my way, you stupid little cockroaches!" Count Killer howled as the baby cried harder. His ears were ringing, and the screaming stomped on every single nerve he had in his body. He wished the baby would just shut up already. Get it done and over with! Make them suffer! "Now give me all your money!"_

" _Stop right there, Count Killer!" A voice boomed, seemingly from out of nowhere._

" _Huh?" Count Killer looked around for the source of the voice, his smile fading. "Who's there?! Show yourself!"_

" _Gladly!" With a forward flip, a small girl draped in a dark purple cape descended between the mother and Count Killer. The girl was wearing a dark purple dress, matching pants and shoes with silver bells on them, felt cat ears on her head, and a tail with lighter tinted stripes on it. The girl's coal black hair was tied into pigtails with white bows, and her eyes were covered with a silver, jeweled eye mask._

" _I am the warrior of the moonlight, defending at all hours, protecting the peace! I am Moonlight Cat!" The small girl, Moonlight Cat, pointed an extended finger at Count Killer. "On behalf of life itself, I will make you see the light!"_

 _Instead of cowering in her presence, Count Killer suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed so hard that he dropped both the knife and the child. Unbeknownst to him, the little girl trotted over to her tearful mother, who was only too happy to embrace her child. Thank goodness she was safe. "My goodness! This is just too much! My first adversary is a little kid in a costume! Bwahahaha!" Count Killer found himself slamming his fist on the concrete. "Oh, this is too good!"_

 _Moonlight Cat smirked, and threw a yellow, star shaped shuriken at Count Killer, managing to pin his black top hat to a brick wall. That made his laughing cease. "What?!"_

 _The masked child pulled out a long, silver wand with a black, cat head shaped jewel at the end, donning a purple bow. "Don't let my looks fool you! I'll make you pay for what you've done!"_

" _Tch! You little brat! I'd like to see you try!" Count Killer pulled a cutlass out of its sheath and readied himself for combat._

 _Moonlight Cat's wand glowed in a purple light. With screams echoing in the air, the two engaged in combat. Count Killer attacked first by attempting to slice Moonlight Cat several times. Being as agile as she was, she managed to block all of his attacks before blasting a purple ball of energy at Count Killer, throwing him into the sky. He descended downward, his sword ready for slicing. Moonlight Cat was ready for him, as she created a dome shaped barrier around herself, causing Count Killer to bounce right off._

 _She found an opening and went right for it. She punched Count Killer in the face once, completely shattering his monocle. Then, she unleashed a roundabout kick that left him crawling on the floor. Before he could pick up his cutlass, she yanked it out of his hands and threw it away. She placed one foot on his back to symbolize her victory. "You lost, Count Killer. Still think I'm an innocent kitten?"_

 _Count Killer trembled in her presence, and his mouth hung open. No words came out until he finally begged, "Uh...okay! Okay! I give up! Let me go! Please!"_

" _You don't have any special powers, so don't think you're so high and mighty. I know this Arsene Black persona is just a facade. You're pretending to be a villain so you can feel powerful, right?" Moonlight Cat insinuated, without any hint of mercy._

 _Surprised by what she said, Count Killer looked down at the concrete, avoiding eye contact. "...You read me like a map. Am I that obvious? I'm just...so sick of everybody picking on me and walking all over me all the time," He whimpered sadly._

" _I understand your plight, but resorting to hurting people and pretending to be some bad guy will only make things worse for you. Wouldn't you want to be someone they can look up to? Someone they can rely on?" Moonlight Cat asked._

 _Count Killer gave her no answer. With that, the police arrived and arrested him on the spot. Some little kids flocked around Moonlight Cat with radiant smiles and twinkling eyes full of wonder. "Wow! You're awesome, Moonlight Cat!"_

" _I wanna be just like you!"_

" _Thank you for saving my baby!"_

" _No, she saved all of us!"_

" _You're the best, Moonlight Cat!"_

 _Pumping their fists in the air, all of the citizens began chanting happily, "Moonlight Cat! Moonlight Cat! Moonlight Cat!"_

 _Moonlight Cat smiled and blushed in embarrassment. "Thank you, everyone!"_

(end dream)

Alas, Moonlight Cat was just a made up character in a comic that Koike Luna was finishing up before school. Her blue eyes were glued to her drawing as she drew outlines over the final panel. She didn't avert her gaze once, not even as her bluish black pigtails were starting to get in the way. She was still in her white and yellow pajamas. The clock on one of her many bookshelves read 6:53 AM, and sunbeams were already coming through her window shades, dappling the room in a warm, luminous yellow morning light.

"There! Finished!" Once she filled in the last line, she pulled her picture up and stashed it in one of many vanilla folders piling up on her bureau. If she pulled at least one of them out, they'd probably topple over, and the whole room would be covered in an ocean of drawings.

A woman whose bluish black hair was tied into a ponytail popped her head into the room, her blue eyes twinkling with joy. "Luna. Breakfast is ready. You better get dressed."

"Thanks! But school doesn't start until 8:20!" Luna reminded her. Her mother smiled before closing the door.

Since it was relatively nice out, Luna changed out of her pajamas and decided on her outfit for today: a short sleeved black shirt, pale pink overalls, white socks, and black and white sneakers. Dangling from her neck was a gold, crescent moon shaped necklace. She arranged parts of her hair into round dango shapes, with her pigtails dangling from them.

Once she was dressed, she stormed downstairs and welcomed her breakfast with open arms: white rice, buttered toast, and bananas. She treated herself to a glass of water. She sat at the dining room table, right across from a bulky man with chocolate brown hair, eyes of a lighter tint, and a fluffy beard clinging to his neck. His face was buried in the newspaper."

"Morning, Dad!"

"Morning, Luna. You're pretty excited today."

"Yep!" Luna was quick to drink the last of her water. "The application period for the school's newspaper comic strip contest is coming up, and I'm gonna sign up as soon as I get there!" Luna's blue eyes sparkled in anticipation. "I've been waiting for this day for months!"

"I didn't know your school newspaper allowed comic strips," Her dad pointed out with his lips curling up. "But that sounds wonderful."

"There is gonna be a contest to pick which student's strip will be in the newspaper, and they won't announce the results until next month, if what Yuyuko-chan told me is correct," Luna said after she ate some banana slices.

"I think you'll do just fine, dear," Luna's father said.

"Tohru?" Luna's mother popped into the dining room. "Can you pay the water bill today? I have to be at work early," She straightened out one of the sleeves on her suit.

"Sure, Keiko. I can do that," Tohru replied.

"Ohh! Thank you!" Keiko bent over to him and planted a kiss on his cheek. "You're the best husband in the world."

Tohru's face turned red as Luna went to put her plate in the dishwasher. "Thanks, honey."

Keiko's eyes suddenly slammed open. "Oh! Why isn't Tsuruko up yet? She's late!" Keiko scurried up the steps.

Luna stayed downstairs and made sure her schoolbooks were all in her pink, cat themed backpack. Before she could even check if her math book was there, her ears caught the sound of yelling from upstairs. "Mom! I'm not going to school and you can't make me! Can you NOT see the snot dripping out of my nose?!"

"Tsuruko, I get that you're sick, but please don't yell."

"Just leave me alone! I'm sick of you always getting on my case!" _SLAM!_ The sound of Tsuruko's door slamming made Luna flinch, and she covered her ears.

She wished Tsuruko wouldn't do that. Then again, she had been doing it for months now. Yelling at her parents had become an almost everyday occurrence, and as much as Luna put up with it, she never got used to it. Since there was still time before school, Luna decided to watch TV. Surprise surprise, a rerun episode of Feline Senshi was on!

Luna's eyes sparkled joyfully as she watched the trio of cat eared superheroes beat up more monsters. Ever since she was little, she had never missed an episode, and owns many books and other merchandise such as figurines, DVDs, T-shirts, plush dolls, and many music CDs. Even seeing reruns of episodes she already saw made her joy bubble over. It ended at 84 episodes, but for Luna, she would always be a fan. She even had a keychain of one of the Feline Senshi dangling from one of her backpack zippers, and another one on her phone.

"Luna! You ready?" Keiko called out.

"Yep!" The episode ended, and Luna hopped into the car with her mother.

The school wasn't far, but Luna was never one for walking to school, so Keiko drove her to school every day. It was basically routine. Once she dropped her off at Tsukimura Middle School, Luna waved goodbye as she saw her mother's silver car drive away. All of a sudden, a set of fingers danced on her sides, sending her into a fit of laughter.

"Bwahahaha! Whoever's doing that, quit it! Bwahaha!" She managed to free herself from the hands that tickled her sides by pushing them away.

"Guess who, Luna-chan!" A sweet, ladylike voice said.

Luna turned around to find a girl with light pink hair tied into two flat pigtails curling at the ends. Her green eyes had an elegant shine to them, and she was wearing a red dress, white stockings, matching red shoes with white bows on them, and a light purple backpack was tucked into the back of her wheelchair.

"Mairu-chan! I told you not to do that!" Luna told her with a smile.

Mairu let out a merry chuckle. "Sorry. I couldn't resist. By the way, here," Mairu pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Luna. "It's the sign up sheet for the contest."

For a brief moment, Mairu thought Luna's eyes had stars in them. Luna let out a squeal as she took the paper, pulled out her pencil, and wrote her name on one of the empty spaces. Koike Luna. She wrote it in hiragana because she still had trouble with kanji. "Thanks soooo much, Mairu-chan! This is why you're my bestie!"

"You're welcome. You have to turn it into the principal's office by the end of the day," Mairu told her.

"I see! In fact I'll do that right now!" Luna raced into the front of the school, dashing up the stairs.

Mairu's lips curled upward. "She's not one to mess around, isn't she?" That was what she liked best about her. When she had her mind on something, she was going to get it done no matter what. Within seconds, Luna came racing right back.

"Finished!"

"Hey, Luna-chan!"

Luna turned around to find a boy and a girl approaching her. The other girl was slightly overweight with plenty of pudge on her legs, but it didn't detract any beauty points. Her brown hair was tied into a flouncy ponytail, setting off her dark blue eyes. She was wearing a blue and white top, black leggings, and blue and white sneakers. The boy's raven black hair was in a perfect bowl cut, his eyes being the same hue as Mairu's. He was wearing a sleeveless red shirt with black feathers on it, beige khaki shorts, black and green sneakers, and tall white socks.

"Akari-chan! Koushun! Morning!" Luna wasted no time hugging them both.

Koushun rubbed his hair with his hand. "I think we're getting our English tests back today."

"Morniiiiiing!" Announcing her presence with a gleeful shout, Akari suddenly glomped Luna and trapped her in a tight hug.

"M-M-Morning…" Luna almost choked a bit before Akari got the message and let go.

"Whoopsie! I still don't know my own strength! Hehehe!" Akari's face turned red with embarrassment.

Mairu clasped her hands together. "I really hope we passed our tests. If I don't, I'm gonna cry!"

"Me too!" Luna added.

"Come on, girls! Don't look so glum!" Akari's smile was too contagious to ignore. "You studied like crazy for it, so you'll pass with flying colors!"

"Just because we study for it doesn't mean we'll pass…" Koushun added.

 _Ring ring ring ring ring_

The harsh sound of the school bell resonated all throughout the area. "We better get going!" Luna exclaimed, dashing for the door. Akari, Koushun, and Mairu followed suit, or in Mairu's case wheeled to the door. None of the students noticed a snow white cat with green eyes and a crescent moon on its forehead watching them all run inside.

* * *

"Uuuugh! Takemaru-san! Stop sticking pencils up your nose and pay attention!" A female teacher scolded, smacking the white board. The kid in question, Takemaru, turned red with embarrassment as he took the pencils out of his nose. It must be confessed that some kids laughed. Takemaru was the class clown, after all.

"Everyone! Calm down, everyone! Now, can anyone here tell me what an integer is?" The teacher asked.

The answer popped into Luna's head right away. An integer was a whole, natural number and its negative, such as 4, 0, and -10,984. Decimals and square roots aren't integers. She raised her hand, along with other students, but the teacher called on Mairu. "Sawai-san? Can you tell me what an integer is?" Mairu told her exactly what Luna had been thinking, only Mairu used 6, 19, and 2,010 as examples.

The teacher nodded. "That's correct," She then wrote numbers on the whiteboard. Negative 12, 400, negative 96, and 8. "Can any of you tell me the opposites of these integers?"

Luna raised her hand again. This time, the teacher called on her. "Koike-san?"

"The opposites are 12, negative 400, 96, and negative eight, Osawa-sensei," Luna replied without missing a beat.

"Good," Mrs. Osawa went on to talk about how integers could be used in real life situations as well. It must be confessed that some kids weren't paying attention. Two girls way in the back were passing notes to each other. Takemaru tried to fold one of his notebook papers into an origami swan, but the head didn't come out right. Another girl was doing her nails.

Mrs. Osawa happened to notice the girl's pink nails and stomped over with a stern look. "Kubodera-san! This is math class, not the salon!" Mrs. Osawa scolded, fixating her angry gaze on the defiant, purple haired girl. "Now hand it over!"

Kubodera turned to face Mrs. Osawa with her own glare. "Shut up, you old hag! Your screechy voice makes me want to gag!" A gaggle of kids laughed at that caustic comment. Luna just gave them disappointed looks, though she had to wonder if Kubodera made that bad rhyme on purpose.

Mrs. Osawa didn't find it funny at all. She balled her fists, clenched her teeth, and pointed to the door. "Off to the principal's office, young lady! March!"

One of the girls whispered, "You really showed her, Shouko-chan!"

Shouko stomped off to the principal's office, but not before saying right out loud, "Oh, by the way, you've got gum on your skirt. You must have sat on it."

More laughter. Mrs. Osawa looked down at the back of her skirt and found a wad of gum on it. She yanked it off as Shouko left before yelling, "We are in class, kids! Pay attention!"

Luna kept her ears covered throughout the entire brouhaha, and she rocked back and forth just a little bit. Mairu put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a soft smile that seemed to say, "It's okay. It's over now." But in Luna's mind, Mrs. Osawa's screechy voice didn't go away.

The white cat peered into the window, going unnoticed.

After an hour, lunch time came around, and Luna, Akari, Mairu, and Koushun sat at their table. "Uugh. That Shouko girl really shouldn't have been so mean to Osawa-sensei. What's her problem?" Luna asked before eating a piece of dorayaki(1).

"Who knows?" Koushun crunched on some crackers. "I never did understand her."

"Hey! Did anyone catch the news earlier today?" Mairu asked as she finished her orange juice. "They say there's been strange phenomena going on. Large groups of people have been falling into comas. Others being turned to stone. Others turned into literal zombies with no emotions or anything."

"Really?" Luna raised an eyebrow. "There's no way people can be turned into stone unless they were evil villains, and we all know magic doesn't exist, as much as I want it to."

"It's true. My mom saw someone get turned into stone two days ago," Akari piped in after she ate a cookie.

"Wow. That's gotta be creepy," Koushun added.

Mairu finished one of her fruit strips. "I hope they get to the bottom of this…those poor people must be so scared and sad…"

Koushun turned his head toward Akari. "Did you get your English test back yet?"

Without another word, Akari pulled it out and showed it to Koushun. At the top right hand corner was a red 85 trapped in a circle. "Jeez. You passed?"

"Yeppers! How about you?"

"I got a 75," Koushun murmured. "My dad's gonna kill me."

"It's not bad! At least it's not a big fat F!" Akari exclaimed. "Did you girls get yours back yet?"

Both Mairu and Luna shook their heads no. Luna turned to face Mairu. "Do you wanna go to the library with me after school? They're having the anime club today."

"Sorry. I can't. I have a flower arranging lesson today."

"Aww. I see. That's okay. Maybe another time. I'll fill you in on what's going on."

The kids didn't know that Shouko was watching them with a scornful look on her face, eating melon bread and finishing her soda. That was all the lunch she had.

At recess, Luna and her friends played four square on the blacktop, passing the ball around. At one point, Akari threw the ball too hard and it bounced out of their play area. "Whoops! Sorry!"

"I'll get it!" Luna dashed for the ball but stopped when Shouko of all people picked it up. Luna looked away so she wouldn't look Shouko in the eye. That didn't stop Shouko from giving her that scornful look she always gave everyone around her.

"Is it true?"

"What's true?"

"That you go to an anime club at the library?"

"That's none of your business."

Shouko gruffly threw the ball at it. It almost hit her face, but Luna managed to catch it before it could. "Tch. You're such a baby. Grow up already."

Koushun ran in between Luna and Shouko, giving the purple haired girl a stern look. "Leave Luna alone, Kubodera. You better not be up to anything skeevy."

Shouko put a hand on her hip. "Ugh. Seriously, shouldn't you be doing better things than hanging out with little miss I like to rock back and forth and watch cartoons I'm too old for?"

"We'd rather hang out with Luna-chan than someone who makes fun of teachers and writes graffiti on the walls!" Akari snapped, with Mairu by her side.

Shouko shrugged. "Whatever," She turned on her heel and left.

"You okay, Luna?"

Luna looked up at Koushun. "Yeah. I'm fine."

The white cat from before watched the scene from the blacktop.

* * *

The final bell chimed at 3:00 PM, and a torrent of children stormed right out of the building, happy to be out of school. A car came for Mairu and it loaded her inside, wheelchair included. Luna waved goodbye before walking three blocks to the Tsukimura Library. It was big, famous, and had a lot going on. For Luna, the library meant two things: books and anime club. She had been coming here since last year, and it was a dream come true. It was a weekly event where kids her own age or older watched anime they would vote on and do other activities like drawing, origami, and other things.

It went on for two whole hours, but Luna didn't stay very long. The president of the club broadcasted two anime she didn't like during the final hour, so she decided to clock out early. She left the library, but before she could pull out her phone, she heard the sound of children yelling.

"You're so weird, you dumb cat!"

"Yeah! Maybe it's a monster!"

"Do some tricks, stupid cat!"

Luna gasped. Three little boys were poking a poor cat with sticks. One of them had a rock on his hands. Luna's joyful eyes blazed with anger, and she balled one of her fists. She was NOT going to let them hurt that kitty! "Get away from that cat, you bullies!" Luna roared like a lion as she charged at the kids. This proved to be enough to scare the kids away.

Luna sighed and crossed her arms. "Don't parents these days teach their kids it's wrong to hurt animals?" She kneeled down to the cat and picked it up. "You poor thing. Did those mean kids hurt you, kitty?" She could see some red marks on its snow white fur. The cat itself licked some of the wounds on its leg, but it could walk just fine.

But something about the cat was...odd. An odd feeling crept into Luna. She felt warm, and the cat had a kind look in its eyes. It was as though she knew the cat from a long time ago. But she knew this couldn't be possible. All of a sudden, the cat darted off. "Wait! Come back!"

The cat disappeared into the bushes. "Awww. I wanted to pet it. Oh well. Gotta get home anyway," Luna pulled out her cell phone and called her father so he could come and pick her up.

* * *

Roses.

Roses were everywhere. All of them were bloody red. A large room was completely covered in roses, from little sticks wenched onto the floor to the transparent canopy strung over a large bed. This was a place far from Earth, far from Luna's concerns about the white cat. A young girl with golden hair cascading down to her ankles sat on the bed, her eyes nothing but eerie clouds of dark energy. One had to wonder how she could see, if she could see at all. Instead of actual eyes, there was nothing but pure darkness seeping out of her eye sockets.

Bowing before her at the foot of her bed was another woman in her early twenties, with fiery red hair tied in a low ponytail, and matching eyes. She was wearing a black dress, black leggings, red boots, and red gloves. Her lips donned bold red lipstick. "You don't look very well, Brunhilda-sama."

"Lydia? Where is Locria?" Brunhilda asked, her voice low but soft. It didn't sound anything like an evil villainess.

"She's in her room perfecting her powers," Lydia replied tersely. "Are you alright, Brunhilda-sama?"

The golden haired girl said nothing. Her whole body felt like lumpy plum pudding. There were days when she just couldn't get out of bed no matter how hard she tried. Her body would ache with pain, and depending on the severity, it would completely cripple her from head to toe. "...I am fine, for the most part. What are you...planning on doing, Lydia?"

Lydia stood up, pushing a strand of hair out of her pale face. "Artemis has awakened. You know what that means, don't you?"

Brunhilda had an idea, but she wasn't sure on how to visualize it. "Uhh...that means someone's gonna get his powers and attack us, right?"

"You have a way with words, Brunhilda-sama," Lydia complimented.

"I know you don't really mean that," Brunhilda retorted weakly.

Lydia extended her hands out as a sphere of light appeared. It glowed in a white light, brightening up the room, even though the room was bright enough as it is, with the large chandelier dangling from the white ceiling. The sphere projected an image of a white cat running through a small neighborhood. "Artemis is sure to find the Sailor Soldier. I wonder who he's picked?"

"Wouldn't Locria be more suited for this mission?" Brunhilda asked. "You are still inexperienced, Lydia. I don't want you getting hurt."

"Rest assured, Brunhilda-sama," Lydia didn't take her eyes off of the sphere for one moment. "I can handle myself just fine."

The sphere than projected an image of a pigtailed girl arriving at her house. Bluish black hair in dango style, radiant blue eyes...something about her sent a chill down Lydia's spine. Was this the one Artemis was seeking? She didn't look like she could be sailor soldier material. How old was she? Ten? Eleven?

The girl in the canopy bed stirred. "Is something wrong, Lydia?"

Lydia shook her head. "No no, my lady. Now we know what we're looking for...and I have the perfect plan to keep her out of our affairs."

Brunhilda pulled a pink teddy bear out and clutched it tightly, as though she didn't want her mother to go to work. She pressed her lips, suppressing a shudder. She had seen her friends go on missions all the time. It had been going on for years, yet she still couldn't get used to it. Too many worries would plague her mind. What if something happened to her friends? Would someone catch them and arrest them? Would they get hit by cars? Would someone attack them and kill them? She never exuded the confidence and dominance of a leader, not that Lydia minded.

The sphere in Lydia's hands dissipated. "I will make sure Artemis doesn't get what he wants."

"I think Locria should go. I don't think-"

"I'm fine, Brunhilda-sama," She had to wonder if Brunhilda was genuinely worried or if she was only projecting worry. But nevertheless, she had to go on this mission.

A brief silence, then, "Please come back."

Lydia smirked. "Don't I always?"

"Yes, but...I can't bear to lose you...if anything happened to you...I could never…" Brunhilda buried her face in her teddy bear. "...forgive myself." The whimper in her voice made her sound like a real ten-year-old kid.

"I'm stronger than you give me credit for. I'll be back, then we can have tea," Lydia told her reassuringly, not that it eased Brunhilda's worry any. With that, Lydia disappeared in a swirl of rose petals.

* * *

"So, Luna, did you sign up for that contest?" Tohru asked at the dinner table. Since Keiko wouldn't be back until seven, Tohru made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner tonight, along with some bagged vegetables consisting of broccoli, carrots, and corn.

"Sure did! I'm gonna get started this weekend so I can at least have something to go on," Luna replied as she scarfed down a big meatball. "Where's Tsuruko?"

Tohru let out a sigh. "She won't come down. I tried getting her to come but she yelled at me. I swear, those friends of hers are a bad influence..."

Luna knew what he meant. Ever since Tsuruko started high school, she began hanging out with the wrong crowd. She was seen sitting around school smoking both cigarettes and marijuana, skipping class, and even getting into fights with both kids and teachers at school. All in the course of one month. Luna had overheard her mother yelling at Tsuruko about her behavior many times, and it always ended with Tsuruko storming out. She wished it would stop.

After dinner, Luna cleaned her plate, went to her room, and immediately started her homework. She left her window open so she could get some cool air in her room. She was so glued to her worksheets that she didn't notice a white cat crawling through her window. When she finished, she turned around.

Her eyes slammed open. There was the white cat from before! "Whoa!" She was so surprised she dropped her pencil. "You're the kitty from before!"

The white cat raised an eyebrow. "I have a name, y'know. It's Artemis."

Luna's eyes widened even further. Did that cat just talk?! Since when could cats talk?! "You...you can talk?! C-C-C-Cats don't talk! How...how is this...possible?!" She scrambled to her stuffed animals, hiding behind a big moose plush. "I have got to be dreaming! Yeah! This is gotta be a dream! I must be dreaming!"

"No, I can assure you you're not dreaming," Artemis hopped off the foot of her bed. Luna had to admit, she liked the sound of his voice. It was suave, warm, and kind, and he sounded like a college student. "I am an emissary from the planet Mau, and I'm looking for a hero who can help me defeat some bad people."

Hero? Planet Mau? Defeat bad people? Was this what she thought it was? "YES!" Luna squealed as loud as she could. Artemis squeezed his eyes shut, flinching at her yelling. "Are you some kind of magical companion who's going to make me into a magical girl superhero?!"

"Uhh...when you put it that way, yes. Here," Artemis did a backflip, and a purple colored light appeared before dissipating into what appeared to be a red and white cellphone. It plopped onto Luna's bed, and she hopped out of her pile of stuffed animals to get a closer look.

"Woooow!" Luna held the phone closer to examine its features. "Is this my transformation item?! Awesome!"

Artemis's cat lips curled upward. "You know your stuff, don't you?"

"So do you want me to help?"

The white cat nodded. "I apologize for this, but Earth is in grave danger. We need a hero who can defeat the enemy, and as my research dictates, you happen to meet my criteria."

Magical hero. Cry for help. Earth in danger. She didn't ask about his research and who the enemy was. She flashed a thumb's up. "I'm Koike Luna! Leave it to me! So...what do I need to do?"

Artemis used one of his paws to point to the phone. "Press the numbers 6, 7, and 2 in that order, hold the phone up, and shout _'Luna Prism Power, Make Up!'_ Got that?"

Luna did a sailor salute. "Right!" She pressed the numbers like he asked and held it in the air. "Luna Prism Power, Make Up!"

The phone glowed in a purple light before it completely consumed her. After a short while, out came Luna, but dressed in different raiment. Her dango hair was replaced with a set of fuzzy black cat ears, though her flouncy pigtails were in tact. Wrapped around her forehead was a gold tiara with a purple jewel in the center. Wrapped around her neck was a yellow choker, with a ribbon on the back, matching the bow on her chest. The bow itself had a silver bell dangling from it with a moon decoration on it. Her top consisted of a white torso, a dark blue sailor uniform neckline, and short, fuzzy pink sleeves. Her gloves were white with the pink fluffs at the end. A dark blue ribbon was on the back of her shirt, closest to her yellow skirt with dark blue, transparent ruffles peeking right out. She wore dark blue, low heeled boots with pink fuzz at the top, and a black cat tail protruded out from underneath her skirt.

When Luna opened her eyes, she noticed the change in outfit. "Whoooooa! No way! I'm a magical girl superhero!" To say she was ecstatic was an understatement. She jumped up and down, squealing like a fangirl. "Yay yay yay! This is sooooo awesome!" But then she noticed the skirt. "But did my skirt have to be so short? I don't want people seeing my undies!"

"You look great," Artemis piped in. "So what are you going to call yourself?"

She already had a name in her head. "Oh! I know! Sailor Luna! How's that?"

"Very fitting," That was when Artemis turned his head out the window. "Oh no!"

"What's wrong?"

"A monster's on the loose! Look!"

Sailor Luna raced to the window and saw what appeared to be a large, red, glowing creature with the body of a wolf and the head of a snapping turtle. Its entire body was a mass of red light, and its eyes were black as a pitch black void. It growled like a monster. At the tip of its tail was a large jewel shaped like a red rose.

Sailor Luna found herself shivering. She had never seen a monster before. As much as she wanted to be a magical girl, she wasn't sure if she could fight it. It wasn't as though she was good at fighting. She didn't know karate, judo, taekwondo, or any of those. How could she possibly fight that thing? She thought about backing out...but a scream pulled her out of her doubts.

The scream came from a girl in a wheelchair.

"MAIRU!" Fear morphed into courage. Something inside Luna snapped. How dare that monster attempt to eat her friend! Courage blazed in Luna's heart. She leaped out of the window and punched the monster square in the face, sending it rolling down the street. It rolled right into a tree, knocking it all the way down. Luna turned to Mairu. "Are you okay?"

Mairu nodded.

A smile formed on Sailor Luna's lips. "Go somewhere safe. I'll handle this," She told her before charging at the monster with a kick.

All Mairu did was wheel behind Luna's house, watching the battle play out. _'She looks and sounds a lot like Luna-chan. Could it be…?'_ She was lost in thought.

The monster lunged forward, its toothless maw opening widely as it made a beeline for Sailor Luna, snapping wildly as it tried to take a hold of her. Luna let out a cry of shock at the monster's sudden movement, leaping out of the way as quickly as she could. The monster charged onwards, unprepared for Luna's sudden defensive manoeuvre, tripping and falling in the street as its face slammed into the ground, its target suddenly missing.

Luna let out a shaky sigh of relief as the monster slowly pulled itself to its feet, shaking off what was no doubt a wave of dizziness. Luna couldn't help but grin as she felt her whole body surge with newfound power. However, her excitement was short-lived as, all of a sudden, the monster changed towards her with an unearthly growl that almost reminded Luna of a wolf.

Not stopping to think about how unnatural the cry sounded coming from the head of a turtle, Luna jumped high into the air with a grunt of effort. Luna's eyes widened in surprise and awe as she suddenly found herself in midair, high above the streets below, watching the twinkling streetlights and the lights of houses and cars from up in the air.

She was dragged back to reality as the monster let out another growl of rage. Luna let out a gasp as gravity dragged her back down to Earth. Deciding to use gravity to her advantage, Luna let out cry of effort as she kicked her right leg out. She hurtled towards the monster, her foot eventually connecting with its turtle-like head, breaking its scales with a crack. The monster let out a cry as it spun away from her, its wolf-like tail flying out.

"That's what you get for trying to hurt my friend!" Luna yelled as she descended towards the ground. However, she suddenly noticed the monster's tail come hurtling towards her. She cringed, unable to dodge it. "Argh!" Luna cried out as the fluffy grey tail smacked into her side, sending her into a nearby building with a resounding crack.

"Sailor Luna! Don't let it distract you!" Artemis yelled as he leapt onto the scene with something in his mouth.

Luna slowly stood up, groaning with effort as the whole world seemed to spin, a throbbing sensation in the back of her head slowly slipping away. "I know!" The dizziness cleared as the monster lunged at her again, prompting her to lunge forwards with a cry, her fist connecting with the monster's face.

All of a sudden, Artemis threw something at her. Sailor Luna extended her arms out and caught the item. As she looked closer, it was a yellow stick with a silver sphere on it that looked like a cat's head. It had a tiny silver and gold crown on it, and a string of gold beads dangled from the bottom of the cat's head. "What's this?!"

"That's the Luna Light! Swing it in a circle, and shout _'Luna Moonrise!'_ It'll destroy the monster!" Artemis explained in a voice loud enough for her to hear.

Before Luna could use it, the monster let out a deafening roar that sent visible sound waves all throughout the area. On impulse, Luna covered her ears and fell to her knees, the sound was too much for her to bear. "Hurry, Sailor Luna!"

"It's so loud!"

With a howl, Artemis hopped over to the monster, leaped on its long face, and scratched it with its claws. "NOW!"

Sailor Luna got the message and swung the Luna Light around in a circle. It glowed in a radiant purple light before forming a large, crescent shape. "Luna Moonrise!" The purple crescent shaped light shot at the monster, consuming it entirely. Artemis was quick to leap out of its way. With a piercing screech, the monster was reduced to nothing but fallen rose petals, which turned brown before shriveling up. A small breeze blew them away.

Sailor Luna fell to her knees. "Did I...just do that…?"

"You did it, Sailor Luna!" Artemis complimented joyfully. "Great job!"

However, instead of smiling, Artemis could see tears in Sailor Luna's eyes, and she was already sobbing. Soon she let out a big cry. "Bwaaahh! I thought I was gonna die out there! I don't know if...I can do this after all!" All Artemis did was amble over to her and put a reassuring paw on her knee. After a few minutes, Luna stopped crying and turned back to normal.

"Wow...this is so weird and crazy…" Luna mused. "But...I might as well do it."

"I'm glad," Artemis added.

"Luna-chan!"

Luna's eyes widened. "Mairu-chan?!"

"You're Sailor Luna, aren't you?! I saw you transform back just now!"

Both Artemis and Luna let out a "GEH!" Mairu found out?! Already, unimaginable scenarios were running through Luna's mind. What if Mairu reported them to the police? What if scientists took Artemis and planned to experiment on him? What if-

"That was awesome!"

"Huuuuuuh?"

Mairu wheeled over to Luna and helped her up. "I recognized you the minute I heard your voice. I don't know what's going on, but I promise I won't tell anyone about it. I'm sorry I didn't run like you told me to. I...I want to help you out!"

Artemis walked over to Mairu. "It's too dangerous for a normal human being to handle. You saw the destruction that happened just now, didn't you?"

Mairu's eyes glimmered. "Ohhhh! A talking cat! How cute!" She extended her hand out. "It's so nice to meet you!"

The white cat wasn't sure what to make of this. But she seemed nice enough, and she and Luna clearly knew each other, so perhaps it wouldn't hurt to trust her. Artemis extended his paw out, and Mairu's hand closed around it so she could shake it. She had a firm grip. "Are you sure you want to get involved? You could die and I don't want you getting hurt."

"Me too," Luna added. "I almost died out there."

"That's exactly why I want to help," Mairu clenched her fists and gave her friend a courageous, determined look. "I know I may not be able to do much, but anything is fine! I want to help you in any way I can!"

Artemis smiled. "I know what you can do," He did another backflip. This time, two items appeared: a black scarf with a yellow crescent moon on both sides, and a transparent revolver. "These are the Lunar Scarf and the Lunar Revolver."

Mairu took them both into her hands. "Hold on!" Luna yelled. "You're giving her a gun?! It's dangerous!"

"Don't worry. The Lunar Revolver is magic. It doesn't have bullets. It shoots light rays, and they're only programmed to attack those monsters. They are incapable of harming normal humans. I checked," Artemis explained calmly. "The Lunar Scarf helps you move around."

"Really?" Mairu wrapped the scarf around herself. It was much longer than a regular scarf. Both ends went way past her feet. The scarf suddenly pulled her out of her wheelchair and stood up all by itself. Mairu found herself hopping around. "Wooow! This is wonderful! I can move around!" The scarf bounced all around, and Mairu found herself laughing merrily. She could move and go places with this. "Thanks so much! I'll take good care of them!"

"By the way…" Luna crossed her arms. "What were you doing here anyway?"

The scarf set Mairu back in her wheelchair. She pulled out a book and handed it to Luna. "I wanted to give this back to you but I forgot."

"Ohhh! My copy of The Feline Senshi Secret Files! Thanks!"

"You're welcome. I better head back now. Thanks for saving me."

"We'll have a meeting about this after school tomorrow. Okay?"

"Okay!" With that, Mairu happily wheeled away.

"Hey, Artemis. Want something to eat?" Luna asked as she opened the door for him.

"Sure. Thanks. I'm starving!" Artemis followed Luna inside.

Luna wasn't sure what the future held, but she knew one thing for sure: she was a magical girl superhero now, and since the fate of the world was in her hands, she needed to keep her promise. She couldn't back out, not that she intended to.

* * *

Footnotes:

1\. Dorayaki is a type of Japanese sweet which consists of two pancake-shaped patties with red azuki bean paste in between.


End file.
